NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Computers in Biology and Medicine . Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Computers in Biology and Medicine, 37 (3), December 2007, DOI 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2006.04.001.